Identification of Leishmania spp. in horses and a dog from rural areas of Uruguaiana, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil

Abstract

Visceral leishmaniasis (VL) is a zoonosis caused by the protozoan of the genus Leishmania. The disease is transmitted by the bite of a sand fly vector. Although the main reservoirs are dogs, other hosts can be infected and may play this role. Rio Grande do Sul western region, located on the triple border of Brazil-Uruguay-Argentina, represents a VL transmission area. The goal of the present study was to identify Leishmania spp. infection in animals from rural areas of Uruguaiana, Rio Grande do Sul. Nine farms in the Uruguaiana municipality, Rio Grande do Sul state, were included. Peripheral blood samples were collected from 113 animals (canine [n=22], equine [n=91]) for detection of Leishmania spp. DNA was isolated and polymerase chain reaction was performed. Eight (7%) animals with Leishmania spp. infection were detected on two farms in the same geographical area, seven of which were horses and one was canine, all of which were asymptomatic. To investigate the species of Leishmania, one of the positive equine samples was subjected to direct sequencing, which confirmed the presence of L. infantum genetic material. Results of this study confirm the presence of L. infantum-infected animals in rural areas of Uruguaiana, and provide evidence supporting further investigation of risk factors for dissemination in such areas.

Detection of antibodies against Leishmania species using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay in cats from the western border of Brazil

“…The L. infantum strain (International code MHOM/BR/2002/LPC-RPV), selected as the antigen owing to its prevalence in the region (ESCOBAR et al, 2020;PRADELLA et al, 2020), was obtained from the Leishmania Collection of the Oswaldo Cruz Institute (CLIOC -FIOCRUZ/RJ). The culture was maintained and cultivated according to the manual with modifications (BRAZIL, 2018).…”

Hierarchical spatiotemporal modeling of human visceral leishmaniasis in Rio Grande do Norte, Brazil

“…Livestock was included to incorporate possible animal reservoirs which may influence the distribution and incidence of VL. Numerous mammals such as chickens [28,29], swine [30], horses [31,32] and cattle [10] have been documented as blood sources for sandflies in Brazil and thus serve as possible reservoirs. Livestock production for buffalo and quail were also PLOS NEGLECTED TROPICAL DISEASES available but were omitted from the analysis due to a lack of spatial heterogeneity.…”

WITHDRAWN: Epidemiological characterization of Leishmaniasis in the rural area of the western border region of Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil

“…In the following years, the disease spread to other state regions and, in 2016, the rst case in humans was recorded in the capital, Porto Alegre [4]. In Uruguaiana, since 2011, when the rst human case occurred in urban areas, the parasite was also detected in canines and horses [11][12][13] and, recently, the disease has spread to rural areas [14].…”